AI Summary
5 min read“The Bayeux Tapestry is one of dozens of sources for 1066, not the only one,” the historian Mark Morris reminds us early in this conversation. “Most people would realize they’re being told one version of a story. Any historical source is to some extent propaganda with a small p.” Morris, author of The Anglo-Saxons and The Norman Conquest, joins Empire hosts Anita Anand and William Dalrymple to untangle the real story behind 1066—a year that turns out to be far less inevitable, and far more contingent, than the familiar narrative suggests. The episode focuses on the political jockeying before the arrows flew, the family drama that fractured England’s ruling class, and the three-way succession crisis that made the Norman Conquest possible.
The Godwin Family: From Collaborators to Kings
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What you'll learn
- 1 Episode Outline: The Norman Conquests: The Real Story of 1066 (Part 2)
- 2 (03:36) **Introducing Historian Mark Morris** - The host welcomes Mark Morris, author of *The Anglo-Saxons and the Norman Conquest*, to discuss the real story behind 1066
- 3 (05:29) **Who Were the Godwins?** - Morris explains the rise of Godwin, father of Harold Godwinson, from obscurity to power under King Canute
- 4 (07:33) **The Godwins in Popular Culture vs. History** - Morris critiques the TV drama *King and Conqueror* and explains the real source material about the Godwins
- 5 (09:19) **Normans and Anglo-Saxons: Two Worlds That Had Met** - Morris debunks the idea that the Normans arrived like an alien invasion in 1066
- 6 (12:09) **How Much Did the Conquest Actually Change England?** - Morris weighs in on the historian debate about continuity vs. transformation
- 7 (13:16) **Edward the Confessor: More Than a Holy Fool** - Morris reveals the real Edward behind the saintly image in the tapestry
+ Full timestamped outline available in the app
Guests on this episode
Show Notes
Who was William the Conqueror? Who was Harold Godwinson? Who was Harald Hardrada? And how did these three rivals change the course of English history forever?
In Episode 2 of this series, Anita Anand and William Dalrymple are joined by Marc Morris, author of The Norman Conquest and The Anglo-Saxons, to discuss the road to the Battle of Hastings in 1066.
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